Red Cat? Green Cat? -By Jack Cole

I hear a lot about people trying to nail down a cat’s personality based on their fur color. For example, ginger cats are known to be “personality plus” cats and tortoise-shell cats are reputed to be stubborn and a bit on the volatile side. And don’t even get people started on black cats. They are reputedly the most outgoing and affectionate of the cats, yet some people are actually afraid of them because of long-standing superstitions. There have been scientific studies published on cat coat colors and their personalities as reported by their owners. The study found that gray cats were known to be most aloof and orange cats were reported to be the friendliest and calmest. Tricolor cats were noted for their stubborn natures, bi-colors for the tolerance, and tabby cats for their courage and energy levels.

Does any of this hold water? Well, it seems that everyone has an anecdote, but the calmest and friendliest cat I have ever met happens to be a pure gray cat by the name of Mama. She greets every newcomer to her golf course as though a long-lost friend.  The most unique kitten we have ever fostered was a bright orange kitty named Sushi who felt it necessary to supervise every other kitten’s use of the kitty litter, rushing over anytime one of his brothers or sisters would use the litter. The greatest control, though, is the small colony we feed in our neighborhood that consists of four related black and white cats, aged nine to eleven years old:  Boots, Dora, Swiper, and Benny. There are such a range of personalities among these four cats alone, all of whom are related and share similar markings. There’s Dora who loves to be stroked as she eats. Gentleman Boots who allows everyone else to be fed before he starts eating. Swiper swipes at his relatives when they try to brush up against her, and Benny who never waits to be fed, simply jumps up in the golf cart and starts eating everyone’s food before it’s even on the ground.

From my perspective, I can’t get even get personality consistency within one family, let alone an entire group of cats. It feels like the consistency of cats within color cohorts is pretty much like people and their astrological signs – you see what you want to see!